Against The Odds
by xoxButterflysTornadoxox
Summary: He comes walking into Mike's life smelling over overly used bath soap and getting him called into the principal's office for the first time since college. Mike thought dealing with one Specter was difficult but two, one in a mini-form, is chaotic. He wouldn't change it for the world. One Shot-Possibly. O.C Character. Written in early S.2. No warnings.
1. Chapter 1

It all started when Mike walked into the office on Monday morning to see a kid sitting on the counter of Donna's desk. He looked about ten, maybe eleven, with light brown hair that hung in his dark brown eyes and off to the side. He was swinging his legs, making his converse sneakers hit the counter every few seconds. His eyes were trained to the glass wall that looked into Harvey's office. For a minute, Mike thought he was imagining the kid. Donna didn't seem to pay the child any attention at the moment and Harvey was working away in his office without even raising his head. No one else was looking at the kid but Mike. "Uh, Donna?" Mike asked slowly, his eyes still watching the boy. The kid looked over at Mike for a second before returning his eyes to the office.

"Yeah?" Donna asked just as slowly, typing away on her computer.  
"Who's that?"

"Thomas, Mike. Mike, Thomas," Donna didn't even look up. Mike looked away from the redhead to see Thomas staring at him. The kid nodded his head in a hello before hopping off Donna's desk. He started to walk away down the hallway before Donna stood up and held onto the counter. "And where do you think you're going Mister?" She asked in an authority voice. Mike looked between the two people. Donna had her eyebrow in the air and Thomas was frowning innocently.

"The bathroom."  
"You just went to the bathroom seven minutes ago," She pointed out. Thomas shrugged one shoulder.

"Gotta go when you gotta go." The response made Donna roll her eyes but she waved him off. Thomas took off sprinting for the men's bathroom. Once he disappeared around the corner, Mike made his way to where he used to sit.

"Okay, what's going on?" he asked, curiosity getting to the better of him. It's not common to have a kid in the office building; in fact, Mike's never seen it happen before. But Donna seemed completely comfortable with it. "Is he your nephew or something?"

"Nope." Donna popped the 'P' as she sat back down.  
"A client's kid?"

"Uh-uh," she shook her head and straightened out some folders. "Give it time, Rookie. Give it time." Before Mike could figure out what that meant, Harvey stepped out of his office.

"What are you doin' standing around? Get in here; we have work to do," Harvey bossed the associate around; it was his job after all. Mike stood up straight and looked back to the corner that Thomas went around; Mike wondered if Harvey knew about him. "Where'd he go?" Harvey asked Donna, looking around Mike at the redhead.

"Bathroom."  
"Again?"

"Kid's gotta go when Kid's gotta go." Donna copied the boy's words. Harvey rolled his eyes, just like Donna had.

"Alright, fine. Make sure he doesn't make a toilet into a volcano again, okay?" with that, Harvey went back into his office, expecting Mike to follow. Mike did, and closed the door behind him. "We're meeting with Walton at twelve, so it'll run into your lunch break."

"Not like I ever really have one of those," Mike mumbled. "Hey, who is that?"

"Who's who?" Harvey sat down at his desk and looked over the Bingaman file once more.

"The kid? Thomas?" Harvey looked up at Mike with slightly wide eyes. He didn't think Mike had seen him.

"He's uh…he's my…"

"Yo! Boss man!" Thomas, himself, strolled into the office as if he owned it. Harvey sighed and leaned forward against his desk as Thomas reached the other side. "You might want to get a janitor or something."

"What did you do now?"

Thomas shrugged, "I may have gone a little over board with the soap dispenser." Even though Harvey was panicking about the pink pool there must be in the men's bathroom, he chuckled at the boy's innocent face. The chuckle made Thomas smirk. "At least the bathroom smells good now."

"Donna!" Harvey shouted. He knew she heard the conversation, so he didn't have to ask her to call the janitor.

"Got it!" She replied as she grabbed her phone. With that covered, Harvey sat back in his chair and stared down the kid in front of him.

"Did you at least use some of that over boarded soap?" Thomas nodded, but Harvey didn't believe him. "Hands." Thomas held them up in Harvey's face.

"Take a whiff."

"Make Mike do it; that's what associates are for." Harvey nodded at the blue eyed man. Thomas looked over his shoulder to look Mike over before holding out his hand. Mike hesitated for a moment but Harvey was watching him, so he smelled the kid's hand.

"Oh, yeah. He used soap alright." Mike wrinkled his nose at the strong smell. Thomas smirked with pride.

"Told ya," he looked back at Harvey, who rolled his eyes. "Are we going or what?"

"What are you talking about?" Harvey frowned, "We still got an half an hour left."

"That's what you said thirty minutes ago," Mike's not sure if he imagined this either, but when Thomas rolled his eyes, it looked just like when Harvey had moments ago. "Make that thirty five minutes ago, adding the bathroom."

"Alright, fine." Harvey sighed. He stood up from his chair, straightened up his blazer and went around his desk as he buttoned the middle together. "Got your stuff?"

"Got the note?" Thomas asked with eye eyebrow in the air. Harvey pulled the paper out of his pocket and passed it to the boy as they exited the office.

"Let's go, Squirt." Mike stood still in the office. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do. Harvey was leaving the building with a kid following him, and both him and Mike were supposed to work. If Harvey isn't working, is Mike still supposed to? Or is Mike supposed to go with them? Or should he just sit here until Harvey get's back. Who knows how long that will be. Mike doesn't even know where he went. "Hey," Mike snapped out of his thoughts when Harvey reappeared in the doorway. Mike looked up at see Thomas standing in front of Harvey with the man's hand on his shoulder. "You coming? We're running late."

"If I'm late to school again because you…" Thomas started to say, his head tilted back to see Harvey.

"Relax, punk. You'll be on time. That's what the note's for. Unless Mike decides he's going to be my new office ornament instead of my associate."

"Right, coming." Mike followed the two out of the office. He looked over at Donna as they passed. She gave him a wink before going back to work. Mike had no clue what the hell was going on, but he had a feeling today was going to be interesting.

It wasn't until the car was parked in front of an expensive looking all boys school that Mike figured it out. Harvey was smoothing out Thomas's jacket that hung a size too big on his shoulders and asked if he had the money for lunch. Thomas rolled his eyes but gave Harvey a hug when he held his arms out. Thomas was out the door with Harvey calling out the window to note forget about to give his teacher the note and it hit Mike like a tornado. He didn't say anything until Ray had the car moving again and Harvey had gone silent. For a few minutes, it was quite in the car, with Mike just studying Harvey. The older man felt Mike's stare and tensed up. "What?" He asked innocently with a slight shrug.

"Why didn't you tell me you had a kid?"  
-

Harvey says they're not going to talk about it until this Walton meeting is over. So for the next few hours, Mike sits in his cubical, trying to work but a million questions are running through his head. He can't focus on work when he knows that Harvey has a son. A _son; _an eleven year old son who Harvey apparently didn't want Mike knowing about. Why wouldn't he want Mike to know? He thought they were closer than that.

"Hey," a familiar voice pulled Mike's attention make to the cubical. Rachel was leaning against one of the walls, a smile on her face as she looks down at him. It isn't until he meets her eye that Rachel sees Mike's deep frown and tired eyes. "You look stressed? What's up?"

"Nothing," Mike runs his hands over his face a few times before giving her a fake smile. "Do you need something?"  
"I heard you'll be missing lunch and thought you'd like to go run to the hotdog stand for a few minutes," She suggests sweetly. Thank god for Rachel, Mike thinks as a real smile spreads across his face.

"It's not that I'm mad, I just…" Mike sighs as the two of them walk around the park area with their hotdogs in their hands. Rachel's been listening to Mike talk about the situation, which Rachel seems to know a little something about, as she eats and Mike doesn't. He hasn't taken one bit of his hotdog.

"You thought he trusted you more than that," Rachel finishes his sentence.  
"Well, yeah," Mike admits. "I mean, I've been working with the guy for months now. I thought we knew everything there was to know already. How could he keep something like that from me?"

"Well, you keep stuff from him too, right?" Rachel wraps her arm underneath his and gives his arm a squeeze. "Did you tell him about your grandma?" the mention of the woman makes Mike's face drop even more. "How is she doing?"

"Not better, but not worse," Mike shrugs his free arm. He doesn't really want to talk about his grandma right now. "But that's a bit different, don't you think? At least Harvey knows I have my grandma; I didn't know there was a Harvey spawn out there." Rachel chuckles at his words. She throws out the wrapper of her hot dog and grabs his free hand in hers to stop them.

"Look," Rachel looks Mike in the eyes, making his heart stop a little. "Harvey will tell you everything you need to know when the time comes. You know him; everything has to go his way. He probably has a plan for this and you finding out like this wasn't part of it."

"I don't deserve you, you know that?" Mike smiled. Rachel shrugs teasingly.  
"That's why you don't have me." And man, does that suck.

The Walton meeting went swimmingly, because it is Harvey in charge after all, and the two men are out of the man's house in an hour tops. They get into the car and Ray drives off. After a few minutes of silence, Harvey speaks up. "His name is Thomas; he turned eleven last Thursday. That's why I had the day off," he explains. Mike wasn't really paying attention until he feels Harvey's eyes on him. "I didn't tell you because I didn't want you thinking of me any different."

"Why would I do that?" Mike frowns. "You're still Harvey Specter, my boss."  
"No," the older man shakes his head, looking out of his window. "_Before,_ I was Harvey Specter, your boss; now, I'm Harvey Specter, your boss with a kid." Harvey looks back at Mike with his eyebrows frowning. "Now you're reanalyzing me, questioning everything that you know about me because things are different."

"Okay, fair enough," Mike gives him that. "But how come I'm the only one that didn't know? I understand Donna knowing, because, well she's Donna…" Harvey smiles a little, "And Jessica because you can't not tell your boss that you have a son to look after but apparently when you're the boss, you don't have to tell your associate." And the smile is gone.

"You're still learning. You're just getting good and things are tough right now with Hardman back and Jessica on both our cases. Throwing Thomas into the mix would only complicate things more. There are certain parts of my life that I want separate; Thomas and my job happen to be two of those things. They're the only things, actually." Harvey explains.

"So, you're saying you didn't tell me for my own benefit?"  
"Yes."

"That makes no sense. At all."  
-

The lawyers are working silently in Harvey's office, the closer at his desk and Mike on the couch. They've been like this ever since they got back from the Walton meeting. Neither of them have said a word to each other after Mike started to raise his tone back in the car.

Every once in a while, Mike would look up from his work and watch Harvey through his eyelashes. And once Mike looks away, Harvey does the same. Now they're both reanalyzing each other. Donna is watching them from her own desk outside, smiling when she catches Harvey blush slightly when Mike notices him staring. Those idiots just need to open their damn eyes, already, Donna thinks before her desk phone goes off. "Good afternoon, Pearson Hardman office," She announces into the phone.

"Hello. I'm calling for Harvey Specter. I am the dean at Grove middle school." Donna almost drops her phone before groaning. She's gotten this call many times before.

"What did he do now?"

So Mike and Harvey are back in the car for what feels like the millionth time today, silence remaining between them as they go back to Grove Middle School. They're halfway there, hitting some traffic when Mike breaks the silence. "Who else knows?"

Harvey sighs. "Donna, Jessica, Louis…"

"Louis?" Mike interrupts with a gasp. He sits up straighter and glares at Harvey, "Louis knew before me?"

"Of course he did. I've worked with him for too long," Harvey shrugs as he leans back into the leather seats. Mike rolls his eyes and sighs. "Hardman doesn't know and that's not ever going to happen. Rachel knows but she's never met Tommy before. That's it; work life…personal life," the way he says it reminds Mike about his 'life is this' speech. He wonders how high Thomas set that bar.

They're just pulling up to the school when Mike gets a thought. It's one that would bother him for nights on end if he doesn't ask if. "Harvey? If I had worked at Pearson Hardman beforehand, just like everyone else…would you tell me?"

"I should get in there." Harvey out the car door before Mike could blink.  
"That's a no."

**A/N: I like Thomas; he's got spunk, right? Should I continue this? I wrote it forever ago if you can't tell. I don't have any ideas for it really, so I may need prompts but I don't know how much I'd follow through with the story. Let me know your thoughts! **


	2. Chapter 2

Mike liked to think he knew his place in things when it came to Harvey. When they were at work, Harvey was the boss and Mike was the associate. Though outside of the office, they still had some work to do, he knew they were also friends. Now, he wasn't so sure. How could you be friends with a man who didn't trust you enough to tell you about his son?

Sitting on a cold bench across from the Dean's office in Grove Middle School, Mike couldn't help but think that this was how things were going to be from now on. Harvey in there, doing his own thing, while Mike's out here, in the dark. Harvey wanted his personal and work life separate but Mike thought he fell between those two things; let's face it, his relationship with Harvey had never been the definition of professional.

Mike can't help but wonder if Harvey would have made Donna sit in the hallway while he was in the meeting with Thomas. It didn't slip his mind how pathetic it was that Mike was now comparing himself to the redhead woman, especially when it came to their boss. With a groan, he ran his hands through his hair and tried to focus on the sound of A.C going down the hall instead of his heart contracting too fast. _I am a sad...sad person, _Mike told himself just before the door opened across from him.

Harvey stepped halfway out the door with an unsure look in his eyes. From the small gap between him and door, Mike could see Thomas slouching in a chair inside the office, holding an ice pack to his eye. Whatever happened, it didn't seem good. Mike stared back at Harvey to see him frowning; he can't tell if the look is disappointment or concern. Or both. It's a look Mike's never seen on Harvey before. Right away Mike labels it his _'Dad' _look.

"Hey," Harvey nods at him; his voice is softer than normal, uneasy. It sets Mike off. "Uh, it's going to take a while so..."  
"Do you want me to go back to the office?" Mike suggests; he's already standing up when Harvey frowns his eyebrows. Harvey's looking at him like he grew another, stupid head.

"Get in here." the older man holds the door open more and steps out for room. It takes everything Mike's got not to fall over; did Harvey really just invite him into the meeting with Thomas' Dean? He doesn't have much time to think about it, because Harvey looks impatient and the Dean herself is waiting inside with the kid, so he walks in and allows his boss to close the door behind him before standing their awkwardly. Harvey doesn't notice his stance and sits down in the chair next to his son's. "Sorry about that."

"No, no, it's fine," the pretty woman behind the desk wove it off. She has dark brown hair that curls in a pony tail and matching brown eyes; very pretty, Mike thinks again before letting his eyes roam around the office. There are motivational posters on wall behind him, paintings on the left and right walls and the dean's diploma's on the wall in front of him. She's very accomplished. "As I was saying, Nolan will be punished as well for provoking the fight but because of Thomas's actions..." her words dead on her mouth when she noticed Mike just standing there.

Harvey looked over his shoulder and sighed when he realized too, "Would you sit down?"

Mike snapped out of his daze to see the older man glaring at him and Thomas trying not to smirk, "Sorry," before Mike could settle into the seat beside Harvey, the woman sat up.

"It's alright. I'm Anne Reed," she introduced herself with a smile and held her hand out. Mike shook it politely.  
"Mike Ross."

"My associate." Harvey explained while he sat down.  
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Ross."

"Nice to..."  
"The punishment?" Harvey interrupted. Mike stared at him blankly; it was obvious that he was annoyed but he could have at least let Mike meet the woman better. If he was a reflection of Harvey, he didn't want to look bad, after all; plus, Harvey didn't even introduce him in the first place.

"Right, yes," Ms. Reed sat back down. "Detention, two weeks, every day after school," she told Thomas, who groaned.

"_What_? It wasn't my fault!" the kid whined.  
"Nolan is going to be there too," she added. "A separate room; we learned our lesson the last time."

"Not that I don't think he shouldn't be punished, but isn't two weeks a bit extreme?" Harvey asked. He leaned forward in his seat to address the woman, "It wasn't Thomas' fault."

"Harvey," Ms. Reed linked her fingers and leaned forward. "Thomas swung first. Every kid in that class room saw, including the teacher,"

"Annie," _he calls his kid's Dean by her first name? _Mike frowned, looking between the two. _Maybe because Thomas is in here so often. _But Mike didn't miss the way Ms. Reed's eyes softened when he said her name or when she looked at the eleven year old slouched in his seat.

"I'm sorry, kiddo," she smiled apologetically. "I'm not saying what Nolan did was right, at all, but you can't go around punching people and not get in trouble."

"Okay," Thomas shrugged. He looked and sounded so small, so young; not at all like he did this morning. "But do I have to apologize again like last time?"

"No," Reed leaned back in her chair and smirked, "Between you and me, Nolan deserved that fat lip. Maybe he'll talk less now." Thomas chuckled, making Harvey smile for the first time since they came here. It was small, but enough to lift Mike's spirits too. "I'll make it easy on you; set you up with Chambers for detention instead of Roster."

"Thank you." Both Specters said, Harvey with actual appreciation while Thomas mumbled against the ice.  
"Now, Tommy, as much as I like you...for some odd reason...I don't want to see you in here for a long time. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am." Thomas nodded, sitting up straighter in hopes of leaving.  
"You'll behave?" She asked with an eyebrow in the air. The kid nodded quickly, making her smile. "Why don't you go sit in the hallway while I talk to your dad and..." Anne looked at Mike hesitantly before smiling, "Mr. Ross."

She wanted him to stay. Maybe Harvey didn't want him to; he'll probably ask Mike to leave and stay with Thomas in the hall while they talk. Either way, the thought of being involved in something this personal to the family made Mike's stomach flutter. He would be nervous to be alone with Thomas for the first time but would feel awkward in the meeting.

"Mike, go with him," Harvey instructed, like Mike suspected. Not minding, Mike was the first on his feet with his bag over his shoulder and went to Thomas' side.

"Let's go, kid. These adults are lame anyway." Mike joked, making Thomas grin. The adult took the small backpack off the ground and lead the younger male out of the office before the others could start talking. By the time Mike had the door closed, Thomas had threw himself lazily onto the bench. He was scratching his hair, making the minimal gel left come undone. Not knowing what else to do, Mike took a seat next to him and set the backpack down on the ground by his feet. "I'm Mike, by the way."

"I know," Thomas said. When Mike met his eyes, the kid smirked a little, "Dad talks about you a lot."

"Oh, yeah?" Mike couldn't help but smile at the words. _Well, he mentioned you existed; for Harvey, that's gushing, _Mrs. McCaffery once said. He wondered if that was the same now, or if Harvey actually talked about his associate to his kid. Before he asked, he had a bitter thought; Harvey told Thomas he existed, but not the other way around. "What exactly has he told you?" the kid slouches back in his seat with aggravation.

"I don't know...stuff," Thomas shrugs as he tugs his tie until it hung like a noose around his neck. When he scratched at his aching eye with the other hand, Mike feels this protective swell in his stomach. He's not sure where it came from but he can't ignore it. Thomas looked up at him with confusion for a second when the older man gently pulled his fingers away from his eye, but sighed and started playing with his tie. He winds it around his hand tightly, lets it spring free and does it again. "So, what happened?" Mike asks, wanting to break the awkward silence.

"Nolan Waters is a dick," Thomas growls.  
"Hey! Language," Mike warns. The elementary schooler rolls his brown eyes; all Mike can think about is _Harvey. _"Alright, I'll bite. What did Nolan Water's do? I already know he did something to make you punch him, but I'm guessing you didn't miss and get your own eye,"

"My paper got picked over his as the best in our class," the sentence lacked a pride Mike would think Thomas should have. He'd be really excited if his paper was the best, but getting in trouble cancels it out, Mike supposes. "Nolan said I don't deserve it because my family isn't a real one...that's what the paper was about: our families."

Mike frowned, "Why isn't your family real?"

"It's real!" Thomas threw his hands down onto the bench, making his knuckles bang against the wood heavily. They'd ache later. With a groan, he faced the man, "But Nolan doesn't think so because I just have a dad. Not a dad and a mom, or siblings," Thomas explained with a frown. Mike felt anger swell in his stomach; who does this Nolan kid think he is? "That's crap right? Our family is real, right?"

"Right." Mike patted Thomas on the back.  
"Nolan says two people can't be a family. That one member isn't enough. But that's not true right?" Right away, Mike thought about his grandmother. His grief over her death hit him hard again; Thomas must have seen the change in his eyes because his face dropped even more, "Dad told me...I'm sorry."

He really does talk about me, Mike thought, feeling his heart pound a little harder. "It's okay. And trust me; one family member is more than enough. Nolan doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. Besides, your dad is Harvey Specter. I think he counts as like...ten family members." Thomas chuckled.

"Ya. True," the kids smile stayed for a while as he played with his tie some more. They were silent for the time being until it dropped again.  
"Is that why you hit him? He said your family wasn't real?" Thomas's eyes began to cloud. They got more and more dark and he refused to meet Mike's eyes.

"He said other stuff too. About dad...mean stuff. So I hit him. Dad says not to use my boxing on other kids unless I'm actually boxing them, but he also says to defend myself and my family so I did," Thomas held his head high and strong. Mini Harvey, Mike smirked a little. "So I decked him in the jaw and his lip split."

"Hmm." Not wanting Harvey to hear, Mike nudged their shoulders and dropped his voice, "How'd it feel?" Thomas' smile widened.  
"Awesome!"

"Alright!" Mike held up his fist. His heart swelled when Thomas didn't even hesitate to bump it with his own; unlike the older version of himself. Already Mike felt an attachment to this kid. He wanted to protect him, keep him safe and smiling. He wanted...

Oh, crap. That's why Harvey didn't want them to meet.

**_A/N: Hey guys! Sorry that it took so long to post this and that it's so short. I have the worst writers block for this story. It was supposed to be a one-shot but I love Thomas and you guys gave me a great response to this so I continued. Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter. I'll try to make another one explaining more on what happened with Nolan and maybe write a bit on Thomas' paper. (Though I really should write my own! ;) Any who, if you guys want, you can give me prompts and I can test them out! I'd love to see your ideas for these characters! Oh, these are the other characters I love in suits and would include in the story if you want to include them in your prompts:_**

**_Donna, Louis, Rachel, Jenny, Trevor-weakness, sorry-Kyle, Harold, Ray, Katrina. Anyone else you want, you let me know! Thanks guys!  
_**


	3. Chapter 3

Against The Odds: Chapter Three

*-*-*-*

Since it was decided that Thomas was to have two weeks detention, Harvey didn't ground him. The punishment was enough, considering how the fight wasn't the younger Specter's fault and Harvey didn't want to seem like he was grueling his kid for standing up for something good, like himself and his family. Also, he didn't want Thomas around the house so that he can explain things to Mike privately. It would be hard to get everything out in the open with his son there.

While Thomas packed up a bag so he can stay with Billy tonight—it was a Friday, meaning a break for both Specters—the lawyers stood silently in the kitchen area. Harvey was making a sandwich for the kid, seeing how he had an allergy to peanuts and eating at other people's houses was hard to do. Mike was sitting at counter, watching the incredibly domestic scene.

Mike's used to seeing Harvey do things for himself, and sometimes for others, but doing something as simple as making a soy-butter sandwich for his son seemed too foreign for him to grasp. Harvey did it with such ease, spreading the fake-peanut butter onto whole-wheat bread and then jelly on another slice; if Mike was paying closer attention to anything other than his boss' hands, he would hear a soft humming coming from Harvey's chest.

This wasn't normal; at least, not Mike's normal. Obviously it was Harvey's normal. He reached into one of the cabinets that in the past Mike believed were all hallow, and pulled out a tuber wear container with Thomas' name on top in a familiar scrawl. Harvey made sure to cut the sandwich in half before placing it in the counter and locking it tight. Mike thought he'd explode when he licked jelly off the tip of his finger. "Squirt! Hurry up; I told Billy's mom we'd drop you off at eight. It's 7:40."

Just like this morning, the pair went about their usual lives as if Mike wasn't in the room. He watched as Thomas pulled an overly heavy duffle bag across the floor from his room to the living room. Harvey rested his palms on the counter and leaned forward with a squint of his eye; the dad look was back, Mike thought with warmth in his chest.

"You are staying the night and the afternoon; why could you possibly need that much stuff?" he asked the eleven years old. Small shoulders shrugged as the bag was tugged off the ground and struggled to get over Thomas' arm. Harvey sighed and went over to help, the sandwich forgotten on the table. "What did you pack, bricks?"

"No: Clothes, extra clothes, extra-extra clothes, an extra blanket because Billy's room is always cold, my toothbrush and toothpaste, a hair brush, and just a few books that Billy wanted to look at," Thomas looked up at his father with pure innocents. Harvey didn't seem to buy it.

"Books? Or magazines?"  
"You think porn magazines are that heavy, Dad? It's obviously been a long time since you've seen one," Thomas teased, making his dad roll his eyes. "They are books. I can prove it," the kid dropped the bag onto the couch and unzipped it to reveal books lining the top. Mike knew what they were from over by the kitchen area. The older man seemed to light up with pride before Harvey masked his face with a frown.

"Why are you bringing my old law books to your friend's house?" he asked with a hand on his hip. This was it, Mike was seeing Harvey _parenting. _Now he knows why he asked Mike to come home with them after going to the middle school; earlier in the limo, Harvey said he didn't want Mike to see him differently. When he found out about Thomas, that would change and Mike promised it wouldn't.

Harvey was proving him wrong. Terribly wrong.

"To see what laws we could get away with breakings?"  
"Nice try, want another?"

Thomas gave in; his jaw loosened, making the skin under his eyes sag and the darkness under the sore one more noticeable to Mike. "We want to outsmart Nolan. You said that when we're older, we'll have plenty of time to prove that we're better than him. But why not prove it now while we can?"

That same light, yet ridiculous heavy feeling settled into Mike's chest when Harvey beamed down at his son. They were sharing the same pride, but Mike knowing this made him light headed. He shouldn't feel pride for someone else's kid and he shouldn't feel this kind of affection towards the two when he saw them together. It wasn't right; it wasn't Mike's life.

"I am right; you will have plenty of time to prove Nolan wrong. When you're older and when you're the boss of punks like him," Harvey explained, zipping the bag back up. "You can take the books, but be careful with them. And don't try to be a smart ass at school, all right? If I'm right, that's what Nolan does now and it's what pisses you off."

Thomas shrugged, "I guess."

"Come on," Harvey got the bag over his own shoulder, seeing how it was too heavy for his son's and went back into the kitchen. The kid followed, staying on the other side of the counter and standing next to Mike. He rested his hands on the chair and his chin on top. "Did you pack your meds?"

"Yup," Thomas bobbed his head up on and down. When Harvey checked the side pocket of the duffle bag for the pill bottles, Thomas rolled his eyes and sighed towards Mike. "Dad, I put them there."

"Just double checking. Don't want a repeat of last time." While Harvey packed up the lunch for tomorrow, Mike leaned down to the kid's level.

"What happened last time?" He whispered.  
"I was too wired up and couldn't stay still," Thomas explained. "Brain ran a little too fast for me."

That was enough for Mike to realize what the pills were for: Thomas had A.D.H.D. Harvey explains this later to him, but for now it wasn't his business. Mike patted Thomas' back with a nod and stood up when Harvey sighed louder than them. They were leaving.

* * *

Harvey took them to a restaurant between Billy's house and Mike's. He didn't bother checking the name, too busy over thinking how this meant he'd be going home afterwards. What did he expect? Do go to the condo with Harvey afterwards and fit into their lives now that he knew about Thomas? The Harvey in Mike's head was mocking him right now while the real one got them a table. It was in the back, lowly lit while the middle of the restaurant seemed brighter, less intimate. Mike's chest closed up.

"So," he tried to seem as he always was. He wanted to tease and joke around and pretend that this was before he didn't know Harvey's big secret; that seemed pretty impossible now that he was staring back at Harvey and could see Thomas' features too. The boy got his father's eyes, his smile, and when Harvey had said something to the kid in the car, making Thomas laugh, Mike couldn't help but notice how similar that bell like sound was to Harvey's. Less deep but from the stomach and they both tip their heads back, using their whole bodies when they really laugh. It made Mike smile when it happened.

"Am I getting answers now?" Mike asked when they settled into their seats. There were wine glasses between them on the table. There wasn't even a bottle on the table yet—maybe there wouldn't be either—and Mike swore off drinking for the night. He didn't want his judgment already impaired.

"I haven't gotten any questions yet," Harvey replied as he sipped water. The response made Mike roll his eyes; obviously they both knew he had questions but Harvey was putting off the conversation as long as he could. "Alright," he placed the water down and smoothened down his tie. _Checking to make sure his armor is still strong, _Mike thought as he watched the motion. Once Harvey's hand dropped to the table, he met the other man's eyes. "You do deserve answers, seeing how I kept this from you for a while."

"Yeah, I do," Mike nodded.

"No need to get cold with me, Rookie; I already agreed you're getting what you want," boss-mode. Mike leaned back in his seat and waited for an explanation. "I already told you why I kept Thomas' existence from you." His excuse then was fair enough, so Mike raised his fingers from the table for him to move past it. "What else do you want to know?"

The first question has been bugging Mike since the beginning. He sat up straighter, toying with the edge of the empty plate with his fingers. His eyes never fell from Harvey's, "His mother?" _please don't be Scotty. _The small pause that Harvey gave him made Mike's heart race; a thought worse than Scotty popped into his head and he had to bit his tongue to stop it from pouring out. _Donna?_

Harvey cleared his throat and tensed his shoulders but he nodded, meaning he was going to answer the question. "Her name was Sarah Matthews," the way Harvey's eyes didn't move up from the rim of his water glass made his associate's chest ache. The past tense of her name didn't slip Mike's attention either.

"I met her a few years after college; she's the one who encouraged me to get the job in the mail room," Harvey explained. "We got married when I made it into the D.A.'s office."

"You were married?" Mike's voice rose a little too high, got a little too pitchy. Harvey's eyes slowly met his and he nodded just as small, "All those times people ask you if you are or were ever married you say no. Even to Jessica."

"She doesn't know Sarah and I ever married; Donna's the only one that knows we were,"  
"Why?"

"We got married because when I was at Harvard we found out Sarah was sick and it would be easier for me to be there for her if we were together legally," brown eyes dropped again. Mike didn't interrupt this time though, "I got tired of doctors not telling me anything because we weren't family and I loved her so I asked her to marry me and she said yes. It wasn't any one else's business but our own, so we went to Paris—she had always wanted to go there—we hitched and came back two days later. Donna found out when Sarah got really sick this once and I needed someone at the hospital with me. The doctor asked who I was and I said I was the husband..." he shrugged.

"What did she…I mean…what uh…"

"Huntington's Disease," Mike may or may not have swore under his breath. Harvey heard the soft word and bit his lip, "Yeah. We uh...we weren't going to have kids because…she didn't want them to get the gene and I was rising up the ranks of Pearson Hardman at the time, so we were always careful. But then, uh, I guess, Sarah found out she wasn't going to have a lot of time left so she made the decision herself to go off birth control and when we found out she was pregnant, we fought for like a month," Harvey shook his head, staring at Mike's plate. "Guess she didn't want me to be alone."

Mike was listening to the story, his own stare towards the middle of the table as his heart sank. He knew what was coming from the start but he's never heard Harvey sound so broken before. "She died when Thomas was three months old. I couldn't look at him; couldn't even hear him crying without feeling guilty," Harvey shook his head with shame. He hated thinking about the time when he despised his own son. The one thing he loves most in the world now and he left him alone all those years ago. "If it wasn't for Donna I would have given him up to Sarah's mom. Donna practically raised Thomas for the next few months and then one day…I don't know, I heard him crying and realized that was my kid and I couldn't keep sleeping under the covers forever while he needed me."

"God, Harvey. I am so…"

"Hey, don't," Harvey surprised Mike by putting his hand over his on the table. It was for a second, just to silence him, but a gilt sent through both of them. "I've dealt with it all for years now. I'm fine; well, not fine but good enough. I've got the kid, how could I not be?" the smile, small but bright, reassured Mike that the words were true. The happiness in Harvey's eyes when he spoke about Thomas was unlike anything else. It made Mike feel better about all the bad stuff he'd been through before. "I should have told you about Thomas sooner…"

"No," his hand was already right there, Mike couldn't help but grab a hold of it. He squeezed Harvey's hand and sent him a smile, "No, I get it; Thomas is all you've got, family wise, right? If she wasn't the reason for me selling the pot in the first place, I wouldn't have told you about my Grammy," Mike explained. Harvey's fingers curled around his in response, "No more need to explain that."

"Okay," Harvey nodded before dropping his head; Mike could see the side of his face pull slightly, smiling. A blush spread over the back of his neck at the sight and he bit his lip, "Good…hungry?"

"Starving."

* * *

Despite Harvey picking the restaurant close to Mike's house, they found themselves on his couch after dinner. Some old time movie was playing on the TV, volume low, making the air soft and cozy. There was a distance between the men on the cushions but Mike was curled towards the older one, with his cheek on the back of the couch and his eyes started to close with exhaustion. It has been one of the longest days he could remember. He just wanted to snuggle into Harvey's side and sleep for weeks.

It was Harvey who was trying to put distance between them. He had sat on the couch first, sitting as near to the arm of it as he could without seeming obvious. With his suit jacket off and the tie abandoned, Harvey hoped he seemed relaxed, but the more Mike sunk into the couch, he tensed. Harvey wanted nothing more than to run his finger through the sandy strands on his head, resting near his hand that somehow landing on the back of the couch just after Mike rested there.

This was out of the norm for Harvey. Usually when Thomas was at a friend's, he'd order in and watch some TV or work on cases in silence. But instead, Mike's been filling that silence with his random facts or quoting the movie on the screen, laughing at stupid commercials that only Thomas finds funny and the whole thing makes Harvey feel incredibly content. He wants to wrap Mike up into his side and not let him leave.

He's watching Mike more than he is the movie. It's not like Harvey's never stared at Mike before; but that was at work, when he had two seconds to do it before getting caught. Now with Mike completely engrossed in the film, practically asleep, Harvey couldn't look away. Not from his long eyelashes, or how Mike's are parted just slightly. Every once in a while, he'd mouth the dialogue, whatever it is, and Harvey wanted to close his mouth over them. _Get away now, Harvey, _the senior partner shook himself out of his thoughts and got up to get a drink.

Mike snapped out of his haziness with the movement. "What are you doin'?"

Harvey held up his empty tumbler in response before filling it up to two fingers of whiskey. He knew it was a bad idea, but with Mike watching, he couldn't not offer one for him too. He poured another glass and brought them over to the couch, "Try not to choke on it,"

"Ha, ha," Mike sat up to take the glass. He took it with two hands, wrapping his fingers around the glass and sipping it as if it was a mug of hot chocolate. Harvey couldn't help but smile at his childlike associate. It only lasted that once; Mike set the tumbler down on the coffee table and the next time he'd take it, it'd be in one hand. "So this paper that Thomas wrote,"

"What about it?" Harvey gulped down half his drink, seeing how this was the topic they were going with.

"Thomas told me that Nolan was trashing the paper and that's why they could into the fight, but it was something else too," Harvey tensed noticeably, making Mike want to get the words out quicker, "Something about you. What was it?"

Harvey finished the glass in his hand and sighed, "It doesn't matter, Mike." He stood up and reached for Mike's glass to take it away, but the associate grabbed it first.

"You can't keep keeping things from me, Harvey," Harvey froze when Mike caught his eye, "Not anymore." he trusted Harvey so much it hurt. Harvey feared why they suddenly needed to be so honest with each other but he knew it was true. Swallowing down the lump in his throat, Harvey nodded and sat back down on the couch. Mike noticed how it wasn't as far away as before; like the answers were already there. When Harvey stared back at him, all he could do is nod; Mike didn't know what he was giving permission to, but he couldn't stop himself from doing it.

Harvey reached over and grabbed the glass from Mike's hand. He wanted to down it himself but placed it on the table instead. "I suppose there's been some…talk going around the parents of the kid's in Thomas' grade. They know I'm not married, not seeing any body. They know that I work a lot and the only woman they see me with is Donna, not that I would bring the woman I'm seeing to any of Thomas' school endeavors."

Mike wanted to polish off the whiskey now too. "They think you're seeing Donna?"

A cold smile and laugh escapes Harvey's mouth as he rubs a thumb across his lip, "No. No, they think I'm gay." Mike gasped slightly, but shut his mouth before he could start stuttering. Harvey heard the sound and looked at him through the corner of his eyes for more response. "I suppose it's better than the rumor that I was sleeping with the Dean."

"Are you?"

Harvey's eyes widened; well Mike just got ballsy didn't be? The older man gave him a smirk, not letting his panic show through anything but his eyes, which unfortunately was all Mike was watching, "Sleeping with the Dean?"

Mike rolled his eyes. Harvey held his breath when he turned to be face to face with him, "The other," okay, so he's not as ballsy as before. There was heat spreading from the back of his neck and down to his finger tips. He never thought he'd be asking Harvey if he was gay, even if Harvey was the one to bring it up.

The smirk fell and Harvey licked his lips; it was cruel, Mike thought, trying not to watch the motion. "Not particularly."

"Not particularly?" this whole thing was making Mike frustrated and now Harvey was phrasing like 'not particularly'? He tried not to seem too irritated when he frowned and released his lip from his teeth, "What does that even mean?"

"It means that they were wrong when they said it 8 months ago," _but now they're right, _is clear in Harvey's stare. Mike wanted to punch him for talking in riddles. That is, until he realized his words. His heart dropped and raced in his stomach.

"We met eight months ago."

* * *

**A/N: REVIEW**


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